Status Quo
by ZAFO
Summary: Aang and Zuko fall into a trap in the Sun Warrior ruins, and their 'life-changing' trip takes an awkward turn as they try to find their way out. Eventual Zukaang.


**Title:** Status Quo**  
Rating: **T**  
Fandom: ** Avatar: The Last Airbender**  
Genres: **Romance, Humor, Adventure**  
Summary: ** Aang and Zuko fall into a trap in the Sun Warrior ruins, and their 'life-changing' trip takes an awkward turn as they try to find their way out. Eventual Zukaang.

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**[1.]**

"Zuko, I think the past is trying to kill me!"

The fire prince rolled his eyes from the other side of the spike pit, before bending down and taking the black wire into his hands. He examined it closely, impressed with the craftsmanship of the hundreds of fine fibers tightly wound together.

"I can't believe it." he muttered, in awe. "This booby trap must be centuries old...and it still works!"

"T-there's probably a lot more!" Aang stuttered. "Maybe this means we shouldn't be here!"

Zuko scoffed, then took several large steps back to prepare himself for a running start. When his feet had carried him far enough, he leapt onto the wall closest to him and accelerated his speed level, defying gravity, then landed neatly next to Aang.

He dusted himself off, smug.

"Where's that upbeat attitude you were talking abou—"

Suddenly, the stones beneath them became no more: falling through the vast abyss that lay under and taking with them the two benders they had been supporting. Hidden tiles rigged to cover the subsequent gap moved in to take their place. Aang and Zuko screamed as they plummeted through utter darkness.

Aang didn't even know when he would hit the ground; but better to be safe than sorry. Using the same move that had saved him from getting skewered earlier, he inhaled deeply—grabbing onto a protesting Zuko's sleeve and pulling him closer—before blowing a puff of air big enough to cushion them both.

"OOF!" he grunted, as both boys finally ate dirt, rolling to a stop on top of one another.

The impact still hurt, of course, but well...it could have been worse. A lot worse.

"Get off me!" exclaimed Zuko, shoving Aang off his chest none the less.

"Gee, you're welcome!" Aang replied sourly, groping stone tiles he had been forced to become acquainted with once more.

"Ugh!" the older boy groaned. "Whatever!"

He concentrated a small, crackling flame into the palm of his hand before making it taller; illuminating the way above them which they had come. He and Aang stared at the seemingly endless amount of darkness their impromptu light could not reach.

"...I _told_ you!" Aang wailed. "All these booby traps—we shouldn't even_ be_ here!"

"Well we _are_ here!" Zuko snapped. "And we're going to get out. So stop crying!"

"I'm not crying!"

"Well you're whining, and that's the same thing!"

The airbender shut his mouth, fuming. He would've argued back; but he knew that Zuko would call _that_ whining too, so he stayed quiet. Satisfied, his companion then turned his back to him and began roaming the space they had become enclosed in. Aang stuck himself close to him.

"We're going to get out of here." Zuko said again. "We just have to find a way to."

"...okay." Aang replied sulkily.

Soon enough though, they did. It wasn't long before the boys finally found a wall—and on it an enormous carving of two men in close embrace, their faces barely touching.

Aang blanched.

"Oh no." he croaked.

Zuko—who had only quirked an eyebrow at the strange depiction—looked to him, curious.

"What? What is it?"

Aang didn't answer, his body quivering as Zuko grew increasingly concerned for his bald friend. The firebender clapped a free hand on his shoulder.

_"Aang!"_

"...have you ever heard of the Cave of Two Lovers?" Aang asked shakily.

"No." Zuko replied flatly.

"It's...it's actually a bunch of tunnels located under of the Kolau mountain range in the Earth Kingdom. In the center...me and Katara...we found the tomb of Oma and Shu."

"Oma...and Shu?" the fire prince asked skeptically.

Aang nodded.

"Yeah. _Omashu._ They earthbended the tunnels so that they could meet in secret 'cos they couldn't see each other in broad daylight."

"Okay." Zuko said slowly. "That's a nice story. What's it got to do with us being stuck here?"

Aang gulped. This was the part he had dreaded explaining.

"W-well...Katara and I...we—we uhhh..."

"Spit it out already!"

"WE KISSED!" Aang blurted.

Zuko grimaced at the mental image. Aang was just a tiny bald kid (who just happened to be the Avatar) and Katara was just an overdramatic pre-teen. Weren't they too young for that?

Then again, maybe it was just Aang.

Then again, maybe it was just the whole monk thing in general.

"That's great." Zuko said simply, but the airbender merely shook his head.

"No, it's _not!"_ he moaned, his voice taking on a whining inflection once more. "We did it because that was the key to getting out. And we knew that because on the walls..."

Zuko felt the blood drain from his face. He wasn't stupid. He knew where Aang was going with this.

His teeth clenched, and his hand recoiled from the boy as if he were on fire.

"Aang." he gritted. "These are just bad carvings done underground by a bunch of naked savages from hundreds of years ago. They don't have to mean _anything."_

"Yes they do!"

"No, they don't!"

"Then why are they here?"

"What? How should I know!?"

"You _don't!_ But I do!"

"I'm _not_ kissing you!"

"Well you have to! And—not that I have a problem with it—but shouldn't this be easy for you?"

Zuko looked affronted.

"_What?"_

Aang squirmed, looking highly uncomfortable.

"Well...I mean...I _am_ the Avatar. I like all cultures. Isn't this like, Fire Nation tradition or something? I know we've just moved past the whole wanting to capture me thing—but I really do want to be your friend!"

The offense on Zuko's face had abruptly turned to horror.

"...what the HELL are you talking about, Aang!?"

The airbender threw his arms up, exasperated and embarrassed.

"Oh, just kiss me Zuko! I don't wanna die here!"

"_No!"_

"Do _you _wanna die here?"

"I said no!"

"'Cos_ I _don't wanna die here!"

"I don't care, I'm—"

Zuko didn't get the chance to finish. In his confusion/disbelief/self-defense, Aang had used little puffs of air to propel himself off the heels of his feet, quickly looping his arms around Zuko's neck and giving him a chaste peck while he was still off-guard.

The fire prince felt his brain short-circuiting.

_Oh my god this is Aang._

_Oh my god we're kissing._

_Oh my god I'm a pedophile. _

"—BLAARGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Zuko retched, as soon as Aang parted from him.

Aang felt no better, nearly hacking his lungs out a little distance away after Zuko's fire went out.

"UGGHHH! BLAAHHHH! BLECCHHHH!" coughed Aang. "YOU TASTE LIKE ASH!"

"HOW DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT ASH TASTES LIKE!? YOU—YOU..."

Zuko couldn't even continue. His rage had rendered him mute, and his mouth was flapping open and shut like a dying fish.

"BECAUSE OF KUZON!" Aang yelled, in his own disgust. "HE MADE ME KISS HIM ONCE IN THAT—BLEEHHH—I'M SORRY! THAT WEIRD FIRE NATION FRIENDSHIP CEREMONY!"

"_...FRIENDSHIP CEREMONY?!'"_ Zuko exploded. "WHAT FRIENDSHIP CEREMONY!?"

It was still dark (apparently he had been wrong and the kiss hadn't worked at all) but even if he couldn't exactly see Zuko's expression at the moment, Aang could still sense the furious incredulity in his voice.

Well, shit.

Now he knew why Bumi had been sniggering so much when he and Kuzon had first met...

Aang suddenly felt very small.

"_Oh."_ he said meekly.

"Oh? OH? IS THAT ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY!?" Zuko roared.

"I'm sorry!" Aang shouted defensively. "I-I thought that would work!"

"WELL IT _DIDN'T!"_

"I'm sorry!"

"SO AM I!"

"WHAT ELSE DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?!" the bald boy shouted. "I'M _SORRY!"_

"ARGGHHHHHHHH!" Zuko screamed. Flares of red-orange fire blazed briefly from the firebender's fists, temporarily illuminating their faces once more.

When the pitch black overtook them again, Aang shut his eyes in humiliation.

Not that it made any difference.

"Zuko, please—"

"—Mai is going to _kill _me." his friend moaned.

Aang wisely kept his silence when he heard a light _thunk!_ a little ways away. Knowing Zuko, it was probably by the older boy knocking his head against the wall.

Vaguely, he wondered if that gloomy girl was the one who had gotten Zuko into an apparent smoking habit (like Kuzon) that he hadn't known about 'till now, and he wondered if that was why their voices were so raspy.

* * *

—

**A/N:** ...you know, (cigarette) smokers really do taste like ash, and you gotta love 'em a lot to find it even marginally appealing LOL

please review! :")


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